Ravens' Alohi Gilman Excited to Reunite With College Teammate

Unlike most players who are dealt during the season and dropped into a whole new team, scheme, locker room and city, Gilman has ties to both roster and coaching staff in Baltimore which will undoubtedly make his transition and acclimation period much smoother.

"With the Harbaugh Brothers, I'm excited to see the similarities and differences," Gilman said. "Obviously, I have a lot of respect for both of them – [head coach] Jim Harbaugh at the Chargers and then [Ravens head coach] John [Harbaugh], obviously, the history that he's made here and built this great organization – so I'm excited for it, for sure."

A lot of times, when players change teams in the middle of the season, learning their new team's playbook can feel like drinking through a firehose. Thankfully, that won't be the case with Gilman because when Jim Harbaugh and Charger defensive coordinator Jesse Minter took over the team in 2024, they taught him and the rest of the returning players the defense by showing them film of the Ravens, so he'll be speaking the same relative language in an identical system to the one he's coming from.

"Every coordinator has their own philosophies, techniques or small things that they like to add their wrinkles to," Gilman said. "I learned a lot from coach Minter, but I'm excited to work with [Ravens defensive coordinator] coach [Zach] Orr. This whole defense as a unit has a lot of talent, and whatever I can do to add to it, I'll be here for it."

In Baltimore, he will also be reuniting with a pair of former teammates from the college and professional levels with whom he was close. Seven years ago, he was a senior starting at the University of Notre Dame, where he helped a young, even more baby-faced Kyle Hamilton get his bearings in making the jump from the high school level to college.

"K-Ham", that's my brother," Gilman said. "He was having a hard time as a freshman, wanted to quit, but I had to keep him in shape, and now he's an All-Pro."

Now that they're both established players in the league and back on the same team again, Hamilton has already been returning the favor when it comes to helping his fellow Fighting Irish alumnus get adjusted and familiar with his new surroundings.

"I'm happy to be here," Gilman said. "Kyle has been great. [He's] a great friend [and a] great player. [We'll] get that Notre Dame connection going again, and I'm excited for what's ahead."

When Gilman was still a young pup in the league and just starting to make a name for himself with the Chargers, he was teammates with Ravens Pro Bowl outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy in 2022. The 12th-year veteran, who calls him by his nickname 'Lo', remembers him fondly and is excited to be playing together again.

"He's going to help us out," Van Noy said. "[He is] a very good football player. He plays football, and I'm excited for him to come into our locker room and be a leader right away. [He is going to] get to work. Hopefully, I don't know, but hopefully he's up on Sunday because I think he's going to be able to help us out."

This iteration of the Ravens defense with Hamilton as the ultimate chess piece has been at it's best when they've been able to deploy three safeties in a myriad of ways. The 2023 season was the ultimate example of that when they had Geno Stone and Marus Williams playing in tandem with Hamilton, which allowed them to field the best unit in the league that year. Gilman believes that he brings a similar complementary playmaking ability to accentuate the strength of those around him.

"I can bring flexibility, just bring in that next level of anticipation and just being a playmaker out there, bringing instincts and passion to the game," Gilman said. "I have some chemistry with Kyle [Hamilton]. Hopefully, we can get him the best [opportunities] possible for him to thrive and flourish. [I'll bring] just being the best version of me, being a ball hawk, being a guy who's always around the ball and just commanding the defense."